Trastevere apartment, Rome: Edera - Tips and Area

Characteristic 1BR / 1BA vacation rental apartment in the heart of Rome

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Trastevere, easily Rome’s most picturesque neighborhood, and certainly its most entertaining to visit, is south of the Vatican and west , across the Tiber from the Centro Storico. Viale Trastevere runs across Ponte Garibaldi all the way to Largo Argentina and C. Vittorio Emanuele II and is the main drag of the neighbourhood. Most of the Trastevere’s points of interest lie near this street, and not far from the river. Between Trastevere and the Vatican is the exclusive and park-like Janiculum Hill, or the Gianicolo”.  “You can’t say you’ve been to Rome without having savored a pizza and swilled some tasty Perroni in one of the rowdy outdoor pizzeria in Trastevere. Trastevere is home to raucous pubs, hopping pizza joints, and a loud bohemian population. By day, the cobblestone streets rumble with the sounds of children and Vespas, but when night falls, hippy expats add their voices to the madding throng in Piazza Santa Maria in Trastevere. You may have trouble in finding a table outside in the summer months without reservation. On the plus side, almost any restaurant you stumble upon will be worth your while, provided you stay clear of glossy, lit-up menus sporting color pictures of every dish offered. 

Trastevere – a name that refers either to its trans Tevere (across the Tiber) location or its settlement during the reign of Tiberius – has a distinct Roman vibrance all its own. The Trasteverini claim to be descendants of the purest Roman stock – Romani dé Roma (Romans from Rome). Some residents even claim never to have crossed the river.

The legendary founder of Ostia, KingAncus Martius, first founded Trastevere not as a residential spot but as a commercial and military outpost to protect the valuable salt-beds at the base of the Tiber. The Vatican and Gianicolo hills that flank Trastevere became important outposts for defending the city from Etruscan invasions. During the Empire, sailors in the imperial fleet inhabited the area, building mud and clay huts along the river’s banks. The success of a commercial port started by Hadrian lured Syrian and Jewish merchants to the neighbourhood, and the maritime business flourished alongside such cottage industries as tanning, carpentry, milling, and prostitution.

By the Middle Ages, Trastevere’s commercial activity began to wane and many residents retreated to the other side of the river. In his 1617 guidebook, editor Fynes Moryson warned readers, “because the aire is unwholesome, as the winde that blows here from the South, Trastevere is onely inhabited by Artisans and poor people”. The popes took little interest in the neighbourhood and rarely extended their wealth to build churches or monuments here. The community remained fiercely self-sufficient and in keeping with its independent spirit, Trastevere supported two revolutions in the 19^th century: Mazzini’s quest for a Republic in 1849 and Garibaldi’s resurgence in 1867.

After World War II, things began to change – drastically. The cause was gentrification, as the quaintly “backward” ways of Trasteverini slowly became celebrated by wealthy bohemian types and tourist operators. An recent influx of yoga stores, souvenir vendors, and middle-aged tourists has brought the threat of banality to this famously “authentic” Roman neighbourhood. Thanks to rent control and centuries of fiery patriotism, however, the area has more or less retained its gusto. To keep the spirit of independence alive, Noantri (“We others”, in dialect) is celebrated during the last two weeks of July. Though a bit tacky, the festival features grand religious processions, masses dedicated to protecting “the life of Trastevere”, some kiddie rides, and a porchetta (roas pig) on every corner

Not to be missed:

Sites and Monuments:

Santa Maria in Trastevere ** - This august basilica rises up in the heart of Trastevere, on the square of the same name decorated by a XVII cent. fountain and dominated by the fine Place of S. Calisto (XVII cent.). This was the first church in Rome to be dedicated to Virgin Mary, the floorplan and wall structure of Santa Maria in Trastevere dates back to the 340s AD though this basilica has been added onto multiple times over the centuries. The present construction dates from 1130-43. The front, adorned with XII and XIII cent. Mosaics and fine Romanesque bell-tower is reached via a portico under which are various marble and funeral tablets.
The interior has a nave and two aisles on large ancient trabeated granite columns, a Cosmatesque pavement and a rich wooden roof to a designed by Domenichino (1617). In the Presbitery, closed by a marble surround, a mark indicates the place where, according to legend, oil spurted out on the day of Christ’s birth. The apse features gorgeous, large and important mosaics by Pietro Cavallini * dating back 1140.  Though this structure dates from the 12^th centur, an earlier basilica existed on the site under Calixtus in the 3^rd century. The mosaics of the Virgin and the ten saintly women lining the exterior give way to a sea of gold and marble inside. The 12^th-century mosaics in the apse and the chancel arch depict Jesus, Mary, and a bev of saints and popes in rich Byzantine detail”.
The museum of Roman Folklore and the Romanesque Poets, is being arranged (1980) in the nearby Piazza St. Egidio, with part of the collection previously displayed in the Braschi Palace.

Piazza Trilussa. Beside the Tiber at the end of the fine Sixtus Bridge, rebuilt by Baccio Pontelli under Sixtus IV (1474); it has a large XVI cent. Fountain designed by G. Fontana and, in a corner among the plants, the monument to Trilussa, the noted Romanesque poet. At n. 20, Via S. Dorotea is the famous House of Baker Girl, the beautiful girl of the people, daughter of a baker, who was loved by Raphael.

Via della Lungara – Long straight road of Renaissance Rome, opened under Julius II, between the Septimius Gate in the Aurelian wall and the S. Spirito Gate, by A. Sangallo the Younger (1540). Palazzo Corsini is at n. 10, and in front of it the famous Farnesina.

Palazzo Corsini *  (Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Antica) - The Palace was rebuilt by F. Fuga in 1732 in austere Baroque form and is now the headquarter of Accademia dei Lincei, famous cultural institute founded in 1603. The 1^st floor of the palace while awaiting the definite transfer to the Barberini palace, houses part of National Gallery collection comprising a fine and valuable collection of Italian and foreign works of the XVII and XVIII cents.: paintings by Caravaggio, O. Gentileschi, G. Reni, Guercino, Baciccia, L. Giordano, Canaletto, Valentin; van Laer, Rubens, van Dyck, Murillo, van Wittel.

The overflow from the national collection at Palazzo Barberini is housed here, includine the standard assortment of works by Guercino, Reni, Caravaggio, Rubens and Carracci. Via della Lungara, 10. Tel. 06-68802323.

Farnesina ** - The Villa, one of the architectural jewels of the Renaissance, all grace and harmony, was built by F. Peruzzi (1508-11) for the Senese banker Agostino Chigi, who received Popes, cardinals, princes and artists there; in 1580 it passed to the Farnese family. On the ground floor a visit should be made to the Gallery, which has a beautifully painted vault (Story of Psyche**) by Raphael (1517) with the help of Giulio Romano, F. Penni and Giovanni da Udin, and an adjoining room also painted by Raphael (the famous Galatea **, 1511), B. Peruzzi (Constellations) and Sebastiano del Piombo (Polyphemus and scenes of the metamorphosis). On the 1^st floor, the Hall of Architectural Perspectives, painted by B. Peruzzi and helpers; in the bedroom, Marriage of Alexander and Rossana **, a glorious fresco by Sodoma. The Gabinetto Nazionale delle Stampe (National Collection of Prints) is also in the palace, Italian and foreign prints from XV to XIX cent..

This graceful little Renaissance villa along the banks of theTiber has frescoes by Rapahael, Peruzzi and Sodoma and is in general a very pleasant place to be. Via della Lungara, 230. Tel. 68801767. Mon-Sat 9am – 1pm.

S. Pietro in Montorio * - The Church of St. Peter is placed where, according to tradition, St. Peter was crucified, and was rebuilt in simple Renaissance form perhaps by Baccio Pontelli (XV cent.).
The interior, a single nave with chapels and niches, contains various works of art: in the 1^st chapel on the r., Flagellation, by Sebastiano del Piombo; in the 4st chapel L., Deposition, by the Caravaggio-esque Dirck van Baburen (1617). From the square, panorama * of Rome. In the small court on the r. of the church the Tempietto of Bramante **, an elegant circular building with an outer ring of columns and cupola, of classica simplicity and monumentality (1502). A hole in the chapel below is said to be where the cross of St. Peter was fixed.

Built on the spot once believed to be the site os St. Peter’s upside-down crucifixion, the biggest draw of the Church of S. Pietro in Montorio is a masterly Flagellazione di Gesu, painted on slate by Sebastiano del Piombo from designs by Michelangelo. The Church also contains the tombs of Irish noblemen, exiles persecuted by English Protestants. Next door in the center of a small courtyard is the stunning Template of Bramante. A combination of Renaissance and Classical architecture, it provided the inspiration for the larger dome of St. Peter’s. Visible from the Churh, just up the hill, is Mausoleo Ossario Garibaldino, a starkly fascist monument erected in 1941 to enclose the remains of Goffredo Mameli, the composer of the Italian national anthem. If you want to continue the national theme, a decent hike further up the hill (taking Via Garibaldi past the fountain and then veersite of a patriotically over-blown statue-complex crowned by the revolutionary leader himself.

Passeggiata del Gianicolo * - After the Pincio, this is the most beautiful and frequented walk in Rome, famous, above all for the splendid panorama it offers. Before the entrance to the park is the Paola Fountain of the time of Paul V, with a majestic display of architecture by F. Ponzio and G. Fontana. An avenue leads to the vast square, Piazzale del Gianicolo, the middle dominated by the equestrian statue of Garibaldi, by E. Gallori (1895), and from the terrace of which, a magnificent panorama * of the city can be enjoyed. Continuing down the avenue one meets the monument to Anita Garibaldi (1932) and comes out into the opening with the Faro della Vittoria. This gives the most complete panorama ** of the city, which can be seen spread out from St. Peter’s to he Villa Borghese, to St. Mary Major and St. John in the Lateran, and the Aventin. The slope steepens; near a turning is the trunk of the Tasso Oak which was struck by lightning, under whose shade the poet used to sit. The Church of St. Onofrius is near a hospital just before the end of the walk.

Look down over all of Rome’s monuments. Reach the summit by walking from Via Garibaldi, Trastevere. The cannon goes off every day at noon. Bus 870 from Piazza Fiorentini (off Corso Vittorio Emanuele, where it meets the Tiber).

Botanical Garden – Filled with well-labeled specimens of trees and flowers, the gardens remain green and luxuriant even when the rest of Rome is dull and brown. The remarkable assemblage of flora stretches from valleys of ferns through groves of bamboo to a hilltop Japanise Garden. Of interest are the garden of roses cultivated during the Baroque period in Rome, containing the two founding bushes from which all domesticated Italian roses supposedly have sprung, and the stellar Garden for the Blind, a star-shaped garden of various plants labelled in Braille.S. Onofrio – Rises picturesquely at the top of a panoramic flight of steps with a lovely terrace on the left. It was founde in 1419 and altered. Three Domenichino frescoes are under the portico on the r. The interior has an Annuncation, an early work by Antoniazzo Romano (1^st chapel r.) and frescoes by Peruzzi (1503), others in the style of Pinturicchio in the polygonal apse. In the adjoining convent Torquato Tasso died in 1595; charming cloister with portico and loggia. The small Tassiano Museum is in the rooms occupied by the Ordine Equestre del Sepolcro di Gerusalemme with relicts, editions and translations and the tombstone of the poet (in another room, a lunette with the Madonna and Child and donors, attributed to Boltraffio, 1513).

Restaurants:
Augusto:
P. dé Renzi, 15. North of P.S. Maria in Trastevere. Enjoy the daily pasta specials at lunch and the pollo arrosto con patate. The homemade desserts are wonderful. Dinner is chaotic, lunch features laid-back discussions between waiters and clientele. No reservations. Open 12:30-3pm and 8—11pm.

Fontanone:
P.Trilussa, 46 (06-5817312). Directly opposite Ponte Sisto. Serves traditional Roman cuisine, including rigatoni cacio e pepe, with pecorino cheese and pepper. When you realize you’re paying partly for the location, remember the queues at San Callisto and console yourself with the renowned carciofi alla Romana.

Antico Arco:
P. dé Renzi, 15 (06-5803798). North of P.S. Maria in Trastevere. P.Trilussa, 46 (06-5817312). Directly opposite Ponte Sisto. Serves traditional Roman cuisine, including rigatoni cacio e pepe, with pecorino cheese and pepper.

Pizzerie:
Dar Poeta:
Vicolo del Bologna, 45-46 (06-5880516). From Piazza S. Egidio, head down V. della Scala and turn right. Hardly a tourist in sight. Eighteen types of bruschetta and unusual pizzas amid the old favourites. Save room for the desserts, homemade daily by owner Marco’s mamma. The heat-sensitive should be wary of sitting near the fiery wood oven. Open 7:30pm-1-am.

San Callisto:
Square S. Calisto, 9a – Off S. Maria in Trastevere. Simply the best damm pizza in Rome: shame about the service and the long, long, long waits for a table. Gorgeous thin crust pizzas so large they hang off the plates. The bruschetta alone is worth a postcard home. Open Tu-Su 7pm – midnight.

Pubs:

Enoteca Trastevere: V.d. Lungaretta, 86 (06-588565). The name says it all. A fine wine bar offering dozens of wines by the glass. Large list of beers, cocktails and fine spirits.

Ombre Rosse Caffè: P.S. Egidio, 12. A mellow place to sit outside and people watch. Wine by glass, cocktails, pint of beer.

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